The Alpha of Omega
by gameplayerabm
Summary: The beginning of a hero, the start of war...As the captain of the team Omega Wolf, William Dawkins has to rise to the occasion.
1. Alpha

William Dawkins was fighting for his life.

His well-known double blasters drawn, he was firing into the seething mass of enemies all trying to kill him. His charger packs on each gun were full, and he was ready for a battle to the death. He dashed behind pillars and desks, holding them off as long as he could.

Many of them were falling, but more just kept coming. Laser beams landed around his head like some insane, deadly light show. The walls and floor were peppered with holes characteristic of the deadly beams.

Suddenly a searing pain shot through him. He looked down, and one of the holes that was on the walls and floor had now appeared on him, smoking slightly. In the time it had taken him to glance at the wound, more flashes of light shot through him. Everything was spinning, swirling, fading, spinning, black.

SIMULATION TERMINATED

Will's eyes shot open to reveal the simulation room, the many machines gleaming in the light of the afternoon.

"Ten minutes and thirty-seven seconds, Dawkins. Not bad, not bad at all. Just don't be so enthralled with your wounds, and you'll do fine." This was the voice of Samuel Willis, Will's instructor.

"Does this mean—?" Will asked excitedly, but Sam cut him off.

"Yep," he confirmed. "You pass."

"Yes!" Will exclaimed, and his pride at the success of his four years of hard work was apparent in his shining eyes. He had just officially passed his graduation exam in hand-to hand combat and firearms, and was now an official hand-to hand specialist for the Cornerian Defense Military. Without a further word, he left the room ready to brag to his potential squadron.

Will was a wolf, jet-black save for a single tuft of white on the end of his tail. He had twinkling green eyes and was six feet tall exactly. Known throughout the academy for his well taken care of double handheld laser pistols and his superb hand-to-hand skills, he was a formidable force. He had expected to graduate with highest honors, and had even formed a "team-in-training", as he called it, that he would be working with for the rest of his time in the Cornerian Defense.

This team was waiting right outside his facility, all of them graduated and waiting for Will's results. He burst out of the door like a rocket and told his team the news.

"Well, we're a team now."

Graduation day was a few weeks later. The team waited impatiently for their turn. Finally it came.

"Dawkins, William and team," General Pepper announced. They all arose from their seats and headed up to the gigantic stage. Pepper put his hand over Will. "William Dawkins. Graduating in hand-to-hand combat. Highest honors." There was appropriate applause as Pepper moved on.

"Kevin Thorton. Graduating in aviation. Highest honors." More clapping. Kevin was the same age as Will, nineteen, and one of the best pilots in his class. Will knew he would be invaluable in dogfights and aerial support. A strong canine, he was no slacker in fighting on the ground either.

"Theodore Smith. Graduating in mechanics. Highest honors." Theo was incredibly smart, even for a frog. One year younger than all the rest of the team, he usually preferred hanging back and figuring things out rather than brute force.

"And finally, Ryan Freeman. Graduating in navigation and aviation." The applause here was not as loud, as people awaited the name of the team. Ryan, a patient coyote, showed a lack of anxiety and even looked indifferent as the name was called.

"The team name is, after much discussion, Omega Wolf." There was much applause as the newly christened Omega Wolf took their seats. The ceremony soon ended, and General Pepper faced the audience for a final announcement. All individuals in any team or division, please report to receive your initial assignments. Dismissed!"

Will felt a slight pang of hurt as the parents of the kids that had graduated congratulated them personally. He had been orphaned as a baby when his house was bombed during the Lylat War. He had never actually known his parents at all, and had vowed to get back at the Venomians who had killed them.

Will and his team headed over to the office, talking, laughing, and discussing what they wanted to get for an assignment. They walked quickly, and were one of the first ones to get there.

"Ah, Omega Wolf," Pepper said in greeting. "Ready for your assignment?"

"You bet," Will said enthusiastically.

Pepper opened a file cabinet drawer behind him and pulled out a file with Omega Wolf written across the top in dark ink. He ruffled through it quickly and pulled out two pieces of paper. One was a map depicting the Lylat System, with a certain section circled in blue. "You're on patrol duty, boys. The blue area is yours to patrol. Anything odd or weird should be reported as soon as possible. The location is Sector 7 of the Gamma Quadrant."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, sir, but isn't that near Planet Venom?" Theo asked.

"You are correct, Theodore. You're right on the front lines, so to speak. Anything happens, you'll probably know it first. This piece of paper," Pepper said as he switched the papers, "lists your correspondents. They are basically a part of your patrol team. You will be relaying constant information between them on data you collect and observations you make." With an air of finality, he quickly slipped the papers back into the folder and snapped it shut.

"Enjoy your work, boys."


	2. First Conflict

2 years later.

"Will, it's your shift now!" Ryan called. Will arose from his bed and looked at the digital readout on his clock: 5:00 AM. He groaned slightly as he made his way throughout the cramped hallways of the _Omega_, the small ship that had been given to the team to live in on their patrol route. After a short walk, the hallway opened up into the bridge area, with a large window showing a clear view of empty space, interrupted every so often by the pinprick of light coming from a distant star. It had been a dull existence for Omega Wolf so far. The day was made up of routine six hour patrol shifts that ended with a report and rest. Will had almost wished a couple of times for war to come, just to end the monotony.

"Anything weird?" Will asked as he passed Ryan on his way out.

"Same old, same old, man. Cycled through all the data at least a hundred times. Nothing. Nada. Zip." Ryan shrugged. "I'm going to bed now. See ya."

Will sighed and made his way to the main cockpit of the ship. He sat down in the chair specially reserved for him—although it seemed ironic since he was only a Private First Class. He quickly scanned over the incoming data, confirm what Ryan had said. There was nothing unusual going on.

His shift continued on like that, as he ever so often made adjustments to the ship's flight course and constantly scanned the numbers flashing on the main computer screen. They printed out, blurred together until they became a green block of endless numbers…

Will jolted out of his stupor. An instinct created from past experience told him something was wrong. He froze the data coming across the screen to study it more closely. His clawed finger moved slowly along the screen, tracing the numbers, trying to discover what it was that had alerted him.

"There!" he said quietly as he found the anomaly. The _Omega _was picking up a frequency of electromagnetic radiation not normal to this part of the galaxy. Will was at a loss for what it was, so he decided to wake up Theo.

Will turned on the radio and set it to broadcast to Theo's room. "Theo," he said quietly. "Theo, wake up."

A voice heavily laden with sleep responded, "Ugh…what is it, Will?"

"Come up to the bridge. I've got something weird on the scanners that needs identification," replied Will.

Theo acknowledged the command, and then wearily made his way up to the bridge. When he walked in, Will was bent over the data readouts, mumbling to himself. "Reporting, Will," he said, all traces of sleep finally gone from his voice.

"I want you to come look at this," Will said. Theo headed over for a look.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Right here." Will pointed to a particular frequency. "It's getting an abnormally high readout near Venom. What emits that particular frequency?"

Theo thought for a moment. "Hmmmm…ah! It comes from a particular type of fuel that the Cornerian Defense used to used for their air vehicles. It was eventually replaced. But why would it be coming from Venom?"

"I plan to find out right now," replied Will. He altered the course of the _Omega_ and began heading toward Venom.

The planet was not that far away, and it wasn't long before it came into sight through the main window. Theo had been monitoring the data, and confirmed, "Yes, it's getting stronger as we move in on the planet."

The _Omega _closed in on Venom slowly and deliberately. Will and Theo looked on as landmasses slowly became visible through the smoky haze of Venom's thick atmosphere. Suddenly Theo pointed a webbed hand at the main window. "Look! Something's coming to meet us."

Will peered through the thick fog and discerning a dark, shadowy object coming through the clouds. It was large. Very large. As it emerged from the planet, Will was able to begin to make out some of the features of the ship. It was jet black, with the Venom insignia of a serpent wrapped around the letter V etched in on both wings and the two sides of the body.

"It looks like a _Thanatos _class frigate," said Will. "Heavily armored, but slow. Bad news no matter what its purpose is. It's hailing us. I'm pulling up the video comm. unit." Will pushed some buttons on the control panel and a large screen flickered to life on one of the walls of the bridge area. On it was the face of a jackal with red-orange fur. He looked displeased.

"This is Commander John Connealy of the warship _Crusher_. What is your purpose for approaching planet Venom?" the jackal sneered.

"I would like to know why you are commander of anything, Connealy. You know the treaty ending the Lylat War prohibited your manufacturing of war materials. Such as that fancy warship you're flying," said Will.

"We have a new ruler. One who dislikes your rules. You may not land."

"You realize that manufacturing these weapons is an act of war. And you can't keep me out, I am with the Cornerian Defense."

"You do not have authorization to land, sir," the jackal said.

"I am Private First Class William Dawkins of the Cornerian Defense, and I command you to allow me to land! We have reason to believe that you are hiding wartime materials!" Will shouted.

"I won't let you land," Connealy repeated.

"I am landing. I am fully authorized by the Lylat treaty to investigate your planet."

"And this railgun says you aren't!" With these last words the Jackal turned away from the screen and yelled a command. "Power up the main railgun, stat!"

"Commander!" was all Will yelled before Connealy disconnected the communications link. "They're gonna attack!" he yelled. "Radio Kevin and Ryan right now and get them up here!"

On the deck of the appropriately named _Crusher_, pandemonium had ensued. Crew members were running around everywhere to prepare the ship to annihilate the unwanted intruders.

Commander Connealy grabbed a weapons specialist as he ran by and barked, "Is the main gun up yet?"

"Yes, sir!" the specialist answered.

"Good," the jackal said. "Blow them away."

_We can't fight that, _thought Will. _Our light _Peripolos_-class frigate isn't armored enough. But it's fast…_ A plan began to form in Will's mind. He turned to the quickly assembled members of his team.

"Theo, radio the rest of patrol squadron Alpha. We need backup," Will commanded. "You two," he said to Kevin and Ryan, "man the weapons stations. Activate the rear guns. I've got the controls."

"Yes, sir!" they all saluted and ran off.

Will turned the agile frigate around and hit the thrusters to full. The _Omega _leapt forward like a stuck pig and flew off into the dark void of space. The warship _Crusher _followed in hot pursuit, firing off its main railgun as fast as the recharge would allow. Will weaved in and out of the lines of greenish-blue light at maximum speed. Meanwhile, Theo was at the radio contacting reinforcements.

"All units of squadron Alpha, report to Planet Venom immediately! Repeat, Planet Venom immediately! We need reinforcements!" yelled Theo into the comm. unit. He then shut off the link and ran back to where Ryan and Kevin were powering up the rear guns to assist.

"Are the rear guns up?" yelled Will over the sound of the firing of the _Crusher_'s weapons. It had powered up all weaponry and was now throwing missiles and machine gun fire at the frigate. "I can't dodge them much longer!"

"Kevin reporting that all rear guns are at full power! On your command, Will!"

"Open fire!" shouted back Will.

"Yah-hah! Let's kick some serious butt!" yelled Kevin. He and Ryan aimed the guns while Theo locked the weapons onto the railgun of the _Crusher_. They both sprayed large machine gun bullets at the gun, but to no effect.

"The gun's heavily armored," said Theo. "Try the missiles."

Two missiles flew out toward the gun, fired from the twin missile stations on the back of the _Omega_. The railgun managed one last shot before it was severed from the rest of the ship. But the shot was a deadly one. It pierced the entire lower half of the _Omega_, shutting off the few shields it possessed.

"Damn!" said Will. "We've lost all shields completely! We're sitting ducks!" Kevin and Ryan fired away at the missile stations located on the wings of the _Crusher_. But no matter what they tried, the shots bounced harmlessly off of the strong shields and armor of the heavy warship.

"Will, the rear weapons aren't powerful enough to pierce their shields. We can't dodge them forever," said Ryan.

"Then hold on," said Will in a burst of inspiration. He turned the ship around to face the _Crusher_. Gunfire from the ship ate away at the front of the _Omega_, but not enough to do serious damage. With careful aim, Will fired the main gun of the _Omega_. Out flew a heavy-caliber explosive straight for the right wing of the _Crusher_. It hit the shields and detonated, but the blast radius extended to the missiles on the underside of the wing, exploding all of the missiles and ammo on that side. The wing was engulfed in a bright ball of fire.

"What the hell was that?" cried Commander Connealy.

A crew member shuffled up to the commander. "Sir, we've lost the right wing. Shields are down, and hull integrity is at 78."

"What!" cried the commander, apoplectic with rage. "That's the smallest ship I've ever seen! Fire the missiles still on--" A explosion ripped through the bridge area, cutting off Connealy's last command. The _Crusher _was swallowed up and turned to ash in instants.

The smoke cleared from the massive explosion, revealing that the entire right wing was gone. It was as if it had never been there in the first place. Before the team could capitalize on their efforts, a bright ball which Will recognized as a plasma shot rammed into the cleared side of the _Crusher_. It penetrated to the power core of the ship, destroying it completely in a burst of fire and smoke.

"This is Alpha patrol to Alpha-3, are you OK?" The Alpha squadron had arrived just in the nick of time.

"Thanks for the help, Alpha team," replied Will. "We're grateful for the assistance."

"Surprised you managed to take out the wing. Nice shot there," said Kyle, captain of Alpha team. "So can you tell us what's up? Why are there warships suddenly coming from Venom?"

"We don't know yet, sir. This ship prevented us from landing on the planet," reported Will.

"Hmmmm…" said Kyle, but before the conversation could go any farther, Theo sent an alert message out.

"Multiple fighters and ships coming from Venom's surface!"

"Uh-oh," said Kyle. "Looks like this fight ain't over."

They turned to face the wave of aircraft coming at them, set looks of determination on their faces.

"Let's go," said Will.


	3. Captured!

A dark wave of Venomian ships approached the ten aircraft of Alpha team. Soon they were close enough to get a good count. Theo, always the data man, radioed the odds.

"I'm getting roughly thirty Wolfen fighters, accompanied by ten light _Mercury_ class frigates and ten medium _Pluto_ class frigates."

"I think our ships can take that," broadcasted Kyle. "Prepare for battle." As the final orders of the head of Alpha team echoed throughout the bridge, Will programmed the ship to guard itself if approached by an unfriendly ship and leapt from his commander's chair.

"All right, guys, to the Arwings. The _Omega_ can take care of itself," Will told the rest of his team as he ran to the hangar bay. The rest of Omega Wolf left their stations and followed Will. They all climbed into their waiting Arwings and prepared for take-off.

"Omega Wolf, this is Omega-1, everybody ready for take-off?" Will asked routinely over the comm. link.

"Omega-2 ready to go, Will," said Kevin.

"Omega-3 powered up and ready," said Theo.

"Omega-4 systems are a go," announced Ryan.

"Initiating launch sequence," Will said. "Engines to power." The hangar was filled with the gentle yet powerful hum of the Arwings' engines. "Hangar bay is opening into space, prepare for take-off." Right before the door opened all the way, Will gave one final command.

"Let's kick some ass." In unison they ignited their boosters and shot out into the middle of the battle.

The fleet of Venomian ships had finally arrived, and Alpha team met it in earnest. Omega Wolf was jettisoned out into a clash to the death. Immediately they separated to go and find their own targets. Will decided to head down closer to the planet's surface to keep tabs on any reinforcements coming. There were some Wolfens scattered around the top of the atmosphere, and Will shot there first.

Three broke off and headed towards Will's Arwing. Will dived down and headed even closer to Venom. The Arwings followed in hot pursuit, but Will took a hard right and swung around behind them in a sort of sideways somersault. He took aim at the back of the rear Arwing in the group and fired away. The engines' armor was quickly chipped away until one of them exploded, engulfing the fighter and damaging the one in front of it. Will quickly destroyed the next one, but the final one pulled up to do a somersault. Thinking quickly, Will left a Nova bomb and did his own somersault. Right when he was inverted, he looked up through the window to see the bomb detonate right when the last fighter reached it.

"Three Wolfens down," Will reported, and flew back into the battle. The frigates of both sides seemed to be in equilibrium, so Will sought out more fighters. He spotted one that was flying all alone and approached it. It was different than all of the others, and Will recognized it as a Wolfen III fighter. But there was only one person alive who flew a Wolfen III fighter, and that was…

The pilot turned to look at Will, a smirk on his snout. Wolf O'Donnell turned his fighter and flew towards him. Will flew upwards, but Wolf calmly braked his fighter and swiveled upwards to follow Will's path. He fired a missile into the underbelly of the ship, critically damaging it. Will plummeted to Earth, slowly being drawn by Venom's gravity. He ejected, choosing to fire downwards to escape any further attacks by Wolf.

_So the theories that Wolf died in the Lylat War were false_, Will thought as the ground rushed up to meet him. He deployed his parachute and sank down through the clouds of Venom into a nightmare. Panned out before him were the biggest military preparations he had ever seen. Hovertanks were in rank and file, animals of all species were standing at attention, field upon field was covered was covered with various aircraft. And Will was parachuting right into the middle of it.

His landing went smoothly, but not unnoticed. He was instantly swarmed with the military might of the Venomians. Hundreds of men rushed him, and Will heard one officer bark out, "Bring him back alive!" But now Will was in his element. This is what he had trained for. He pulled out two handguns (the lasers were valuable and only for use as a last resort) and opened fire into the crowd. Five or ten men fell before he ran out of bullets, but the soldiers reached him before he could reload. They surrounded him, swiping at him with claws and the butts of their rifles. Will pulled out his staff as a final defense, but the soldiers were too many. He cracked one in the back of the head, blocked another's attack, then finally fell victim to a hard hit in the back of his own skull. The world spun as Will sunk to the ground.

A small lupine awaited Wolf outside of his fighter as it made contact with Venom's surface. Wolf could easily tell that he thought that he had important news.

"News for me, Private?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," said the wolf, looking a little nervous. "All of them escaped or died,"

"Yes, yes, I knew that," Wolf said as he waved his hand dismissively. "If you have nothing of actual value, report back to base."

"Ah, b-but, sir," stammered the Private. "We have a prisoner as well."

Wolf grinned evilly, showing all of his sharp teeth. "Excellent," he said, his eyes sparkling evilly in the setting sun. "I will see him immediately."

"Yes, sir," the wolf said and scurried off as fast as his little legs could carry him.

_Ah, _Wolf thought._ Time to make a big impression on those Cornerian scum of the galaxy_. He strode into the prisoners unit and headed for the prisoner's cell.

Black.

Will regained consciousness slowly, but he could still see only black. He then realized his eyes were closed. He opened them painfully.

Black.

It didn't help at all. Wherever he was, it was completely dark. He sat there, thinking back to see if he could remember what happened. It was very foggy. There had been soldiers—he had killed a few; he remembered that much. He stood to his feet and instantly regretted it. He quickly slumped back down before he could pass out.

Suddenly, a door slid open in the vacuum of blackness he was trapped in. His surroundings were made evident to him, but he only had a few seconds to concentrate on them before the wolf who had entered the room knocked him back against the wall. Will groaned loudly, to the great pleasure of his antagonist.

Wolf strode over to Will's limp form and hoisted it up by the tag around his neck. Will quietly gagged as Wolf read it. "William Dawkins." Wolf let go of the tag and Will fell back to the ground with a hard thud. "Private 1st class of the Cornerian Defense Military. And now prisoner of the Venomian Army. What a career."

Will didn't even blink an eye. He didn't have the energy. With no response, Wolf continued talking.

"Your friends all ran. Those who didn't died. The Cornerian Military is useless against our might." Will raised his head ever so slightly. "You're the only prisoner, William."

"And what are you going to do to me?" Will asked weakly. Wolf smiled, anticipating this question and answering it with obvious relish.

"Well, that would entirely depend on your actions now, Will," he said slyly. "You can either defect to the Venomian Army, serving under me as Head Commander…" He trailed off, waiting for Will's reply.

"And if I don't?" Will asked.

"Then you undergo painful torture and ultimate death," finished Wolf. Will opened his mouth to decline but Wolf clamped his paw around it tightly. "I will give you one hour to think about your fate. Until then, enjoy your surroundings. Goodbye, William." He spun around and left the room as the door slid shut behind him.  
Will was plunged once again into total darkness.

Wolf walked down the hallway, confident Will would choose the Venomian Army. They always did when left to imagine the torture. And if he didn't—no matter. The difference between an underling and a dead body was nothing to Wolf—and torture was so much fun…

Will sat in his cell, curled up in what he supposed to be the corner. The room was still completely dark. He was thinking, imagining the torture that he could be put through if he did not comply with Wolf's offer. It wasn't pleasant thinking. Images of little snatches of suffering he had heard war veterans at the academy speaking of whirled through his mind, one right after the other. He had to wonder if it was worth it to keep his honor in exchange for the pain that awaited him.

He was not done thinking when Wolf returned. The door slid open, blinding Will temporarily as Wolf stepped into the room.

"Have you made your decision, William?" Wolf asked icily.

Will thought for a moment, then stood up as if to salute Wolf. But instead of pledging allegiance, he vehemently spit in Wolf's face. The ice in Wolf's eyes turned to fire as he wiped away the spit.

"You are an impudent fool!" Wolf cried as he punched Will squarely in the chest. Will flew against the stone wall of the room, hitting his head with great force. As the room spun and faded, Will could hear Wolf's trailing voice as he left the cell.

"I'll see you in the morning, William. You've made the wrong choice."


	4. To Hell and Back

At 4:45 in the morning, Wolf was waking up in his quarters. He sleepily turned to the wall next to his wide expanse of a bed and pressed a button on the wall to summon one of his commanders. The button only made a small buzz when he put his paw on it, but he knew that somewhere over the vast military domain that Venom had become a much louder buzz was most likely waking up one of his underlings. He blinked a few times and waited—he wanted to be fully alert when the commander came.

Commander Matthews was the one chosen by the impartial computer system to be summoned to Wolf's quarters. He was by far Wolf's favorite commander, and rumors flew among the lower soldiers about the privileges and abilities that he had along with that status. It was said that Richard Matthews was the only fox, or indeed, any animal at all, who could suggest contradicting Wolf's orders without a slap across the face. Anybody who was favored by Wolf was a rare animal indeed, as well as incredibly lucky.

Matthews knocked on the metal door of Wolf's quarters. The hollow sound echoed around the hallways of the building, breaking the silence that was surprisingly present throughout the main base of the Venomian military. The door slid open noiselessly and Matthews entered.

Matthews saluted Wolf as he walked in, and Wolf returned the salute. "Thank you, Commander, for being so prompt," said Wolf, fully attentive by now.

"You called, General Wolf?" asked Matthews.

"Yes, Commander. I wish for you to bring the prisoner to the torture chamber immediately," Wolf said. Venom was one the few places left in the galaxy that employed the use of torture chambers. Usually very primitive, they still got the job done, and many stories were told of the horrors that occurred there during the Lylat War.

"With all due respect, sir, why are you torturing one lowly Private?" inquired Matthews tentatively. "He is worth almost nothing to the Cornerian Military."

Wolf's eyes flashed dangerously, but the rumors were true. Commander Matthews was the only one who could dare contest Wolf's will. "It is not the destruction of the wolf I care about," began Wolf. "A good general does not wish to clash the opposing army physically to defeat him. No, that is not all war is. It also requires a contest of wills, a conflict of spirit. Taking on the Cornerian Military directly is not my plan. My plan is to make them afraid, to make Venom an unspeakable name among the ranks of the opposing army! Fear is our best weapon, Matthews, I'm sure a Commander of your high status realizes that."

"Of course, sir," replied Matthews. "I shall move the prisoner immediately." He turned to leave, but Wolf stopped him.

"Arrange a video communications link with the heads of the Cornerian Military as well. I want them to see this." He smiled evilly, as did Matthews.

"Very good, sir," replied Matthews, and was gone.

At five o'clock that same morning, hell began for William Dawkins.

The door to Will's dark cell slid open, waking him up from his disturbed sleep. An important-looking fox was standing in the doorway. He was tall and sported a deep red-orange fur, with a white underbelly. He grabbed Will roughly by the collar of his military uniform and hoisted him to his feet with surprising strength. He then moved Will toward the doorway and shoved him out, punctuating it with the phrase, "Move, scum."

Seeing not much else to do at the moment, he complied, trudging down the hallway with the unknown fox at his back. He was led into a dark chamber and pushed in by the fox. The fox followed Will and headed to a wall that was lit with many small unidentifiable lights. Will couldn't see what he was doing and soon lost interest.

His attention turned to his hunger. Oh God, was he hungry. He had had nothing to eat for a little less than a day and decided he was going to do something about that. "Hungry," he croaked in the direction of the fox.

The fox finished whatever it was that he was doing and turned toward Will. "Beg for food from General Wolf. I'm not going out of my way to make your life any better." He then turned smartly and strode brusquely out of the room, leaving Will to his own devices again.

But not for long. The door slid open and in entered General Wolf himself. "Any change of heart, Will? Going to spare yourself a miserable fate?" he asked tauntingly.

"No. Hungry," Will said.

"You will be fed later tonight. But for now you will have to survive," Wolf said coldly. "You are in my power now, and your life is about to become a living hell." He then turned the lights on, and Will looked around at a horrific sight.

Torture devices. They were everywhere, and all of them looked painful. While Will was gaping at the instruments of terror, Wolf was establishing a connection with General Pepper. Suddenly the video screen flickered and General Pepper's face appeared looking very confused. As recognition settled on his face, it twisted into a look of abject hatred.

"Wolf," he spat.

"Pepper," Wolf replied, with an air of sarcastic formality in his voice. "Although, it's General Wolf now, don't you know?"

Pepper sighed quietly, obviously having no answer. "What do you want?" he said resignedly.

"For you to see this," Wolf said, moving aside to reveal the battered body of the wolf standing weakly behind him.

There was a long moment of silence, weighted heavily with every possible emotion. Pepper stared long and hard at the image of this poor soldier, left to endure a worse fate than a fiery end in space. Finally, he spoke. "What in the world do you want with him, Wolf?"

Wolf flashed his evil smile. "I'm going to kill him. Slowly, painfully, I'm going to kill him right here where everyone can watch." Pepper began a protest, but Wolf moved over and pressed a button and his voice was stopped. His mouth moved vainly but made no sound. "Wouldn't want your pathetic whining to ruin the moment." He then turned around and hoisted Will up by his uniform, sitting him down in a nearby chair.

"Sit."

William stiffened, expecting the worst. Suddenly two metal arms shot out, metal claws tightened painfully around his neck. He tried to talk, but he couldn't—the claws didn't allow that kind of expansion. "Now, now, don't move," said Wolf. "Oh, and don't flinch here; it'll only make it worse." There was a painful second, then a sharp sound, like a dart fired out of a blowgun. It all burst out of Will, he screamed as metal barbs extended a half-inch into his neck. Claws then grabbed his arms and legs, piercing them too. He was immobile except for his eyes, which flew around the room wildly.

"I would advise you not to scream, as the tension will simply cause added pain in the locations where you are restrained," said Wolf with the disinterested air of one recommending which shirt to wear. "Don't move," he added as he went over to a cabinet just out of Will's vision. He came back with a whip, broken at the end with nine separate strands, barbed with metal objects. "A modern cat o' nine tails," Wolf remarked. "I felt it was needlessly dismissed as it is oh so effective." He snapped it once and turned towards the hapless wolf.

Will hardly remembered the whipping long afterwards. Wolf began at his front, cracking it so many times that his fur was red instead of black. Then he moved around to his back. The chair back disappeared, slid away, and Wolf bloodied and broke his exposed back. Finally Wolf somehow removed the whole of the chair structure, leaving Will painfully hanging attached to the barbs everywhere. Things were starting to blur, get hazy…

The world snapped into focus suddenly. Wolf was pacing in front of him. "The adrenaline shot you just received will keep you conscious enough—conscious enough to know that you are about to die." He held up William Dawkin's prized blasters. "These are very fine guns. Fitting that I'm going to kill you with them. Now, last chance, animal. Will you join the Venomian army?" He knew Will couldn't answer, and he didn't want this pathetic heap of bones anyway, but it was his last game before the finale. "No?" He fired one of the claws and Will's leg fell free. The sudden weight shift dug the barbs in deeper.

"Will you join the Venomian army?" _Sssseew!_

"Will you join the Venomian army?" _Sssseew!_

"Will you join the Venomian army?" _Sssseew!_

William Dawkins was hanging by his neck, the barbs cutting. His skin was so torn that the barbs lost hold and he fell to the ground. Wolf pointed both blasters at his head, crying triumphantly, "Fear the Venomian Might!"

_KABOOM!_

Commander Matthews was perusing the base, overseeing more military preparations, when a glint in the sky caught his eye. At the same moment, a lieutenant ran up to him, looking excited. "Sir, we have incoming fighters, backed up by multiple frigates and even some cruisers."

Matthews bared his teeth grimly and pointed firmly. "Go, fool, and intercept them. We can't have our plans stopped now. Go!" The lieutenant scurried off and began yelling his own orders rapidly. A chain reaction began, and soon the base was in full motion. Matthews began sprinting for his own section to call them into action when the bombs began to fall. The ground was peppered with red flowers blossoming with fire and destruction. Some screams could be heard over the din—unlucky ones.

Matthews kept running amidst the flames. His field was in sight; he ran desperately. Hell was about to break loose.

Wolf and Will were learning of these developments in an explosive manner. One of the bombs struck the prison facility directly, and a gaping hole was left in the building. Wolf was thrown by the blast hard against the wall. Striking his head, he fell unconscious.

Will rolled over painfully and saw his blasters at eye level on the ground. Slowly reaching forward—_so much pain_, he thought—he grabbed them and tucked them away into his holsters on his pants. Then he began crawling out the hole in the building towards what appeared to be safety.

Outside was a holocaust. Broken bodies littered the ground. Cornerian ships were flying overhead. Not knowing exactly what to do, he fired a few blaster bolts into the air in a hope that he would attract attention. One Arwing turned towards him and began a descent, but exploded in a yellow plume on the way to the ground. He fell to the ground suddenly, not even realizing that he had been standing or what an effort it had been. There was a gap in consciousness—next thing he knew, someone was shaking him awake.

"Will! Will! You alive, man!"

Will rolled over and looked at the face of Kevin Thorton. "Dead…a dream?" he mumbled incoherently.

"Jesus Christ, Will, you look like you've been through hell! We all thought you were dead, didn't even get a replacement they wanted to mount an attack so fast." He picked up Will and slung him over his shoulder. "Come on, we ain't outta here yet." Will caught a glimpse of another explosion and realized he was still on Venom's surface. Yet only one thing was on his mind for some reason, which he tried to communicate to his wingman.

"Water…thirsty," he gurgled weakly.

"Goddammit, Will, you've gotta be really far into shock. Don't die on me." Kevin laid Will in the back of his fighter. "We'll be off the ground in a sec, Will. I'm gonna get you back to our ships…you'll be fine, I swear…" He ignited his thrusters and took off into chaos. "Things could get a little rough; make sure you're strapped in there."

With all of the brilliance of his well-earned title, Kevin swerved through enemy fighters in an attempt to reach a cruiser. Finally he spotted the ship _Jupiter_ hovering just above the clouds in the atmosphere. He sent out a frantic message. "This is Omega-2 to Jupiter. Request permission to dock now!"

A female voice responded, "Permission granted. Are you hit?"

"Negative," Kevin replied. Just then, the Arwing shuddered slightly and angry words poured in through a second comm. channel. Kevin looked to the right and saw a Wolfen fly, the pilot shaking his paw. "Strike that, Jupiter, I've just taken damage. And I have a soldier who's in pretty bad shape."

"Copy that, Omega-2, dock at port landing bay."

"Roger." Kevin guided his wounded ship in towards the landing bay, but the fighter wobbled and changed course erratically. "Damn, stabilizer damage." he muttered. Meanwhile, Will was in the back, strapped into a seat especially for picking up stranded soldiers in battle. His senses were dulled, and he was having a hard time following what was going on. It seemed that they were landing…but how he got here from the prison was a indiscernible blur. Kevin was the pilot, he knew that, but what exactly had happened? It felt like a dream somehow…

A jarring thump cut off his fragile train of thought. It appeared that they had landed. Kevin was unbuckling him, lifting him up. Finally the dream-like state was lifting, and the full weight of his injuries fell upon him at once. As the world faded and medics wheeled him away, he heard Kevin's voice almost pleadingly calling, "It's gonna be OK, man, you're gonna be fine, gonna be OK, gonna be OK, gonna be…"


	5. Author's Notes

Well, I feel that the story should be by itself without author's notes to interrupt the mood, so I've devoted an entire "chapter" to all the author's notes I can come up with! That way anyone who reads this can read the story straight through without distraction, yet they can still read my quirky little thoughts if they want to right here. It's an odd idea that I've never seen before, so let's see how it works, hm?

I know I haven't updated this story in many, many, many years, and I just came across it recently. The fourth chapter was about halfway written, and I liked the story still, so I decided, "What the hell?" and kept it going. Maybe some of my original readers (oh, about three or so), will remember this story, who knows?

By the by, I remember the original inspiration for this story came from Shattered Lylat Prelude: Enter Black Wolf by Ed Wallace so I figured he deserved a mention. Good story (I think the title's right), especially the battle description.

Done for now, but I will actually update this in the future. Hope you enjoy it and please, please review!

P.S. I own original characters, but obviously not the Star Fox environment or any of those characters I use in the story.


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